South Bay farmers in California are giving up on strawberry growing because the crop is becoming too expensive and harder to produce. Growers also cite a lack of affordable and available workers as another reason for ditching the fruit.
Farmers believe the price of strawberries will rise because it is such a delicate crop that is getting harder to produce and harvest. An area farm owner blames a broken immigration system for depleting the supply of workers.
"Badly, badly. In the worst way," Pete Aiello said of needing workers.
Aiello owns Uesugi Farms and is a former head of the Santa Clara County Farm Bureau.
"This year we're just going to put one of our pepper crops here," Aiello said of a field once used to grow strawberries. Aiello said the biggest problem is he could not get enough workers to pick the berries, which were rotting on the vine.
One of Aiello's crews are now picking Napa cabbage, instead of strawberries near Gilroy. On Thursday the crew was made of up of only about eight workers when it usually has at least 13 pickers.
Aiello's company still grows some berries in Watsonville. He said the big growers like Driscoll can withstand the labor shortage, but warns even they are beginning to feel the pinch.
Source: nbcbayarea.com
